Day WD prompts gamblers to call for weekly injury updates

Jason Day’s withdrawal from the Arnold Palmer Invitational after just six holes has sparked calls amongst fantasy sports players and the world of gambling for the PGA Tour to introduce a weekly injury list.

Former world No.1 Day lasted just six holes of his first round at Bay Hill before taking his leave with a back injury.

The Aussie, a former winner of the tournament, was listed as one of the pre-tournament favourites with many bookmakers. However, his odds might have been considerably longer had he disclosed before his WD that he had been nursing a lower back problem since Sunday.

Significant changes to sport betting in the US have led to some organisations making better provisions for this lucrative industry. Earlier in the week, Major League Baseball announced a new process for teams to release their starting line-ups in advance of games.

Day’s sudden withdrawal prompted calls amongst some social media users for the PGA Tour to disclose which players are undergoing treatment prior to tournaments on a week-to-week basis.

The chances of that happening? Absolutely zero if Kevin Kisner, the co-chairman of the Tour Player’s Advisor Council, gets his way.

It’s nobody’s business,” Kisner told the Golf Channel. “I mean, are we out here to gamble, or are we out here to play golf? I don’t really give a s*** about the DFS [Daily Fantasy Sports] guys. You should have picked someone else. If [Day] had shot 65 and he had a hurt back, those guys wouldn’t have said anything.”

Brandt Snedeker agreed. “If you’re going to start doing that, then you can probably list most of the guys out here,” said the nine-time PGA Tour winner. “Most everyone’s got some kind of injury that can flare up at any time. So I don’t see how you can honestly do that.”